The Cardiff Blues could not break down Aironi’s committed defence in the second half, but tries in the first 35 minutes from Richard Mustoe and Lloyd Williams set the visitors on their way to a well-merited win. However, Cardiff will be disappointed to not have come away with a bonus point after taking a 17-3 lead into the break. It seemed there for the taking, but Aironi, to their credit, tightened things up in the second half and put the visitors under some pressure. Fly-half Ceri Sweeney tallied up 10 points for the Blues, successfully converting both tries and also slotting two penalties, while Ludovic Mercier kicked the hosts' only points after 29 minutes. Cardiff were boosted by the availability of Wales trio Martyn Williams, John Yapp and Scott Andrews, who were freed to play by the Wales management to get some game-time. Williams played the full 80 minutes, while Andrews and Yapp each played a half. The scoring began after just three minutes, Sweeney booting over a penalty to give the Blues a lead they would never come under serious pressure to surrender. The next score took a little over 15 minutes to arrive but when it did it yielded Blues' first try of the evening. Full-back Mustoe was the scorer, with Sweeney sweeping over the extras moments later. Mercier got Aironi on the scoreboard with a successful penalty of his own but within four minutes the visitors had extended their lead again. Lloyd Williams was the man to touch down on this occasion, going over in the 33rd minute before Sweeney made it 17-3 with the conversion. The home side prevented any further scoring in the seven minutes before the break but Cardiff must have been eyeing the two tries required for a bonus point. Sweeney kicked a penalty just two minutes after the restart, but the visitors surprisingly failed to score again. Instead, Aironi held firm for 38 minutes without further damage, though they never looked likely to secure a bonus point of their own.
